Newtown victim’s mom to give Obama weekly address

WASHINGTON — The White House says the mother of a Newtown shooting victim will deliver the weekly presidential radio and Internet address.

President Barack Obama typically gives the talk, focusing on a topic that’s in the news or a policy the White House is pushing.

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Families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting meet with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., after he announced a bipartisan deal on expanding background checks on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. David and Francine Wheeler are at left. AP

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This week, Obama has asked Francine Wheeler to deliver the address instead. Wheeler and her husband, David, lost their 6-year-old son Ben in the December schoolhouse shooting in Newtown, Conn.

White House spokesman Jay Carney says Obama believes the voices of Newtown families have been critical to progress on gun control. The families have been in Washington lobbying members of Congress. The Senate cleared its first hurdle for gun control legislation on Thursday and will consider expanded background checks next week.

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